An on-line petition has been set up on the Downing Street website and it’s your chance to tell Gordon Brown we won’t stand by and let tragedies like the deaths of six members of the Statham family and Rugby League star David Myers continue on South Cheshire’s motorway.

Chronicle readers are making their views clear that we need to solve the safety problems on the notorious stretch between Junctions 16 and 18. It’s clear the public’s patience has finally run out.

At busy times the motorway is almost overwhelmed by the sheer volume of traffic and serious accidents are becoming more and more frequent.

What’s to be done? Rolling speed limits like they have on the M25, improved lighting and signage, an increased police presence and speed cameras are some of the ideas already suggested by readers.

Our campaign is calling on the Highways Agency to identify and finally deliver the safety schemes they have been suggesting for the past 10 years.

The latest summary report of the M6 compiled last year by the Highways Agency’s Nick Curwen found that the road carried about 125,000 vehicles a day, of which 25-30% were HGVs.

In 2006, the then Minister of State for Transport Steven Ladyman announced that the Highways Agency should proceed with plans to widen the motorway as a "priority project".

However, Mr Curwen’s report states that: "The earliest date by which either a widened motorway could be fully open to traffic is towards the end of 2017, though sections could be open by 2014/2015."

The report revealed the estimated cost of the widening scheme had risen to £2.9billion and predicted that if no additional M6 capacity is provided, around 140,000-150,000 vehicles will use the road per day in 2031.

But, if the M6 is widened to four lanes, the number of vehicles per day is expected to rise to around 165,000-180,000.

Campaigners such as the Group Against Motorway Expansion (GAME) say widening is not the answer.

Spokesman John Gale said: "It is not a solution as it will mean more traffic and more CO2 emissions. The better alternative is developing a sustainable transport system."

For more information on the campaign, and details on how to sign up to the Number 10 e-petition, please click here